First Trust Advisors LP Purchases 39,035 Shares of British American Tobacco p.l.c. (NYSE:BTI)

First Trust Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of British American Tobacco p.l.c. (NYSE:BTI - Free Report) by 3.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,293,782 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 39,035 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP owned 0.06% of British American Tobacco worth $46,990,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. McIlrath & Eck LLC boosted its stake in British American Tobacco by 614.8% during the third quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 2,173 shares of the company's stock worth $79,000 after acquiring an additional 1,869 shares in the last quarter. Bard Financial Services Inc. boosted its position in shares of British American Tobacco by 49.5% during the 3rd quarter. Bard Financial Services Inc. now owns 94,209 shares of the company's stock worth $3,446,000 after purchasing an additional 31,174 shares in the last quarter. Virtu Financial LLC bought a new stake in British American Tobacco in the 3rd quarter valued at about $3,742,000. Sculati Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in British American Tobacco by 52.1% in the third quarter. Sculati Wealth Management LLC now owns 19,490 shares of the company's stock worth $713,000 after acquiring an additional 6,680 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. acquired a new stake in British American Tobacco in the third quarter valued at approximately $219,000. 16.16% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BTI has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. StockNews.com raised shares of British American Tobacco from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, February 17th. UBS Group raised shares of British American Tobacco from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th.

British American Tobacco Stock Performance

Shares of BTI stock traded down $0.40 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $42.05. 3,384,101 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,651,170. British American Tobacco p.l.c. has a 52-week low of $29.36 and a 52-week high of $43.12. The company has a current ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $40.66 and a 200 day simple moving average of $38.27. The stock has a market capitalization of $87.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.63 and a beta of 0.38.

British American Tobacco Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 28th will be issued a $0.7491 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 28th. British American Tobacco's payout ratio is currently 60.57%.

British American Tobacco Company Profile

British American Tobacco p.l.c. engages in the provision of tobacco and nicotine products to consumers worldwide. It also offers vapour, heated, and modern oral nicotine products; combustible cigarettes; and traditional oral products, such as snus and moist snuff. The company offers its products under the Vuse, glo, Velo, Grizzly, Kodiak, Dunhill, Kent, Lucky Strike, Pall Mall, Rothmans, Camel, Natural American Spirit, Newport, Vogue, Viceroy, Kool, Peter Stuyvesant, Craven A, State Express 555 and Shuang Xi brands.